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Rear lights and brake lights on my sedan don't work 100% of the time.
When the lights are off (during the daylight hours) all brake lights work fine.
When the tail lights are on only the drivers light is light all the time, the passenger side will come on once in a while. When I put the brakes on the third brake light is visible on (bright) the other brake lights give a VERY faint glow which can be seen in the reflection on the bumper. If the passenger tail light is not lit I can see the brake light come on, when the tail light is on then the brake light appears to be out (again, very faint).
What can I do to make these lights work 100% of the time?
As they are, I feel as though I can drive the car because I can't depend on all the lights being on when they are needed.
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After some time away from the car and just today getting back to it I was able to hard wire the rear lights and they are work great,the Volvo sockets was the missing link.
Art, you spent a lot of time helping me through this, thanks.
Tony H, I appreciate all you've done too.
Now I feel I can drive this car and not Wonder if the lights are on or not.
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It was meant to be an easy question.
If the sockets are Volvo sockets they will say "Volvo" on them. If not, then you won't be able to solder to them, if your experience is like my experience.
More heat won't help. 140 watts is more than adequate. If you spend money, don't throw it at another soldering iron -- get some used sockets from the yard or someone who goes to the yards. Make sure they are genuine Volvo. Actually, I think you can do well with just the two dual-filament sockets, a white and a black. The rest do not get enough use at the 21W level to be a problem.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore
You feel stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.
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Now I know how to determine if these are OEM sockets. They are not. They say ALVO on them.
You just saved me for buying another soldering tool. Thanks!
I will look for the Volvo sockets but in the mean time, do yo think the bolting of eyelet connectors to the tabs would work?
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BTW, I just checked at our Walmart. They didn't have the pigtail sockets I suggested in the post below.
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I just came back from a local junk yard. They had all ten "Volvo" sockets so I bought them. I will be wiring them up this afternoon.
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Dan, I was thinking about your eyelet idea. I have some pretty small rivets in a drawer, but I think I'd be creating just one more potential hot spot.
Perhaps, just to get the car on the road while you look for Volvo sockets, you could find a pigtail socket at Walmart or the Autozone, and dangle that dual-filament culprit in the lens opening. I might even solder directly to the bulb base as an alternative to giving either of them any money. Doing that may restore your faith in your soldering skills, especially if the bulbs have brass bases.
PS "Alvo" was a dirty trick for sure.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore
A lot of money is tainted. 'Taint yours and 'taint mine.
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Well, I'm trying to solder some 16 ga wire to the metal contact points of the light bulb sockets and the solder doesn't want to adhere to the metal of the sockets.
What do i need to do to accomplish this soldering of wire to bulb sockets?
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Had the same problem with the made-in-Taiwan sockets, but not the Volvo ones. You might try to file the plating from where you are soldering...
Of course I have no idea about your experience, so I must say, heat the largest part of the work with the iron; melt the solder with flux on the work, not the iron, although you can sometimes improve heat transfer feeding solder between iron and work. But I've been soldering for half a century and those aftermarket replicas are like trying to solder to aluminum. Use your old Volvo sockets.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore
Youth would be an ideal state if it came a little later in life. - Herbert Henry Asquith
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I just tried using a soldering paste on the tab and concentrated the soldering gun on the tab to get it good and hot and the solder just balls up and doesn't adhere. I think it's time to replace the soldering gun. I'm using a Heller 8200.
What would you recommend, whats your favorite?
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Sorry Dan, missed your replies. Email notification is spotty I guess.
Tony dropped me a note, so I checked back here. Your Weller 8200 is a great tool if you can remember to retighten the tip nuts often. When I used one, long ago, I would wet my finger and touch each of those brass nuts (man is that hard to type!) and listen for the sizzle. If hot, just retighten with a 3/8" wrench.
But you won't get any further than I did if you're trying to solder to those Chinese sockets. Just clear one thing up (esp regarding your new thread), are you working with Volvo sockets?
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Art Benstein near Baltimore
The short fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.
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Most of these came with the car and I picked it up about a year ago. I do remember buying a couple of replacements for fcp and I don't think they are original Volvo sockets. Most likely, aftermarket.
I've filed on these and used a dremel tool trying to get to some brass and nothing doing. I'm thinking as a last resort, I might try to drill small holes in the tabs and bolt on the wires using eyelet connectors and small screws with nuts.
Befor I do this though, I want one more shot at soldering the wires on and I'm sure I need a hotter soldering tool. I tried using soldering paste but my current soldering gun gets the tabs hot enough to turn everthing black and that's it, the solder wront flow and stick.
I like the looks of the Weller WES51. Ya, to costly but if it works then I'm good with that.
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These are a bear. I've sanded, filed and cleaned the tabs with alcohol and I'm using a 140watt soldering gun. the solder just doesn't want to adhere.
Do you think I can get the old style sockets form fcp of Groton?
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I was having tail light issues a few weeks ago... The R side was working but the L side was not. I spun all of the fuses in their holders and the problem resolved itself. Dont know how that works but it did.
Matt
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'90 245 252k, '93 945 230k
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Dont know how that works but it did.
Running (parking, tail) lights have separate fuses right and left; #15 and #16.
I heard an explanation for that once; in some places in Europe there are laws requiring the street-side lamps to be lighted overnight for legal on-street parking. I guess they can be selected for minimum battery drain.
Brake lights are all on one fuse.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore
"No wonder nobody comes here; it's too crowded."
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a fountain of knowledge you are Art
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'90 245 252k, '93 945 230k
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I saw that explanation here on the board. Just repeating it. That's how I can spread myths too.
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Mine used to NOT work 100% of the time. Fixing them became an everyday thing.
Finally I soldered all the wires onto their respective fixtures. NOW they work 100% of the time.
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Finally I soldered all the wires onto their respective fixtures. NOW they work 100% of the time.
Me too. Exactly.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore
Show me a piano falling down a mine shaft, and I'll show you A-flat minor.
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How did you know which wires went to the light sockets (fixtures), or I should ask, what wires go to what sockets? :)
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Hey i am looking to fix the tail lights on my 1991 240 they have gotten me pulled by the police only my third break light is working, one of the blulbs wont fit in tail light any more, but i think im gonna have to do what i see in this post about rewireing the connections, is there a step by step with much detail?
thank you very much
wes
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1990 740GL 186000mi 'The Bag Lady' 1991 240 235000mi 'KGB car' Visit My Volvo-Page www.wesleytyler.com/volvo
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Thanks Art, this helps a lot.
Did you guys use 16 or 14 ga wire? It hard to tell from the pic's.
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That's great, I have plenty of that.
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I seem to recall someone on this board had a way to hard wire the lights on the rear of the car. Does anyone have the direction on doing this.
Can this be done with easy and will it solve the problem. I'd really like to get these lights functional so I don't have to worry about them.
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It appears to me that you have issues with the sockets on the circuit board and ground from the board to the chassis connection. The power side connector is a funky setup for a safety conscious car builder to use has always been my thought!
It is time to whip out the ohm meter and a good pencil eraser to shine things up! Pay attention to types of sockets and where they go.
In the past, I had a step father who had put a single filament bulb in place of double filament one (or vice versa) on one right rear tail light of his motor home. It caused all kinds of weird things to happen. It messed with the front light turning signal lights too!
A mind twister that he had another mechanic look into on his trip, he said.
I tore into the directional signal switch of the steering wheel with my ohm meter, to get to a central point.
I had ohm variances of one side to the other and front to rear. Depending on the switch or brake switch.
He never owed up to doing such a thing. It was his convenient lapse of memory I thought.
Ten years later, I'm starting to acquire a slight taste for that now.
I think the Volvo's use all single filament bulbs. As last I remember!
I was once, a sharp knife in my tool box or as I say now, a young man, I used to be!
Phil
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You guys gave me something to work with. I will start by check all tail bulbs and brake light bulbs. Tonight I looked up the bulb needed for the brake lights and they are 7528's which are duel filament bulbs. I'm not sure whats in the car so I'll start there then I'll check the ground etc.
I'll let you know what I find although it might be a couple of days before I can get to it.
Thanks for the tips.
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Sounds like you have a Grounding issue there.
Look at the Black wire (on both sides)that come out and screw to the body of the car. Make sure that they are screwed in .. maybe clean a bit of paint away to insure a good connection.
If you look on the Flexible circuit board of the tail light assembly, you will see a hole on one of the ends (closest to the center of the license plate).. The other end (closer to the Fender)has a ring lug Pop riveted to it. Both the hole and the Ring lug is considered Ground... add a wire to the hole and run that to a ground screw. Make sure the Pop riveted ring lug is snug to teh Flex circuit board. see where that gets you.
This might help you locate teh grounding. http://cleanflametrap.com/tony/PassengerTailLight.pdf
--
'75 Jeep CJ5 345Hp ChevyPwrd, two motorcycles, '85 Pickup: The '89 Volvo is the newest vehicle I own. it wasn't Volvos safety , it was Longevity that sold me http://home.lyse.net/brox/TonyPage4.html
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Tony, I sent you an e-mail.
If you did not receive it, please contact me thru the e-mail.
Dan
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